Natural Antibiotics Versus Synthetic Antibiotics

We may start with descriptions, where both turn out to be substances that are known to help us combat bacteria which may try to harm us. The difference between the natural antibiotics and the synthetic antibiotic is, however, in the fact that the former are products of nature (directly harnessed from the fields, being typically plant parts), whereas the latter are products of laboratory-based chemical synthesis. To get a synthetic antibiotic, you need to know which chemical combinations have an antibiotic effect (that is, a bacteria-killing effect), obtain the ingrediological chemicals and mix them in the right proportions to end up with the antibiotic. To get a natural antibiotic, on the other hand, you need to know which plants (and which specific parts of them) have an antibiotic effect, and then go out into the fields to obtain those said plant parts, use them in the right way , and benefit from the said antibiotic effect.

The difference between natural antibiotics and synthetic supplements is not just in terms of definitions, of course.

Natural antibiotic differences from synthetic supplements in terms of (typical) working speds. We tend to see the synthetic antibiotic working faster than the natural supplements. But note has to be taken of the fact that we are talking of typical cases here: for there are natural antibiotics that are known to work faster than some synthetic supplements. All the same, the typically faster working speed associated with synthetic antibiotics is the main reason as to why the synthetic supplements are commonly used in medical emergencies: where a person is already afflicted of an illness emanating from the bacterial infection, and where speedy decimation of the bacteria is essential. What is not here here is that the efficiency of synthetic antibiotic tends to be their undoing too: as most of them end up inadvertently killing the beneficial symbiotic bacteria as well.

Natural supplements also differs from synthetic antibiotics in terms of safety profiles. The natural supplements are seen as being, on the whole and in many respects, safer than the synthetic antibiotics. Noteworthy here is the fact that use of supplements is not always on a transient basis (although that is ideally how it is supposed to be). Rather, there are people who find themselves with conditions that force them to use them on a long term or very frequent basis. Such people, if they were to use the synthetic antibiotics, would almost certainly end up with very nasty side effects of such long-term antibiotic use. But where the milder natural supplements are used, the long term outlook may be much better.

Natural antibiotic differences from synthetic supplements in terms of (typical) working mechanisms. We are looking at a situation where the typical synthetic antibiotic works by directly cutting down (killing) the harmful as well as, inevitably, some useful bacteria. This is against a situation where the typical natural antibiotic works by not simply killing the bacteria, but also enhancing the body's natural capacity to fight off such bacterial infections in the future.

Cat Houses - Green Feline Living

When you think of making efforts to go green in your home, what does that entail?

We are in a time when many people are doing more to try and become more environmentally friendly and leave less of a carbon footprint. This may mean you make sure to use your recycling bins religiously to give new life to the bottles and cans you have used. It also may mean you read the ingredients in your clothes and other items you are considering buying more carefully, to make sure they are made of renewable resources.

While you may have gone through all the items you use on a regular basis, there is probably an area you have still overlooked. What about the items owned by your pets? If you have a dog or cat, you probably have a dog or cat houses. While these may not seem like overly threatening items when you look at them, you also may not have thought what those dog and cat houses are made of.

First, let's look at the obvious. Are your dog and cat houses painted? If so, do you know what kind of paint has been used? Paint does not last forever. Sometimes it will chip and fall off and become a part of the soil. If the paint is toxic, that is being put into the soil around your home. Another thing to keep in mind is that your pets may well chew on their dog and cat houses. That could mean the toxic chemicals in the paintings are going into their bodies as they chew on the edges of their houses. If your pet does enough chewing, this could end with them getting sick. Instead, try to find dog and cat houses that have been painted with friendly paints, or better yet, not painted at all.

Next, most dog and cat houses are made of wood. If they are meant to be outside, often times the wood has been treated to resist rain and the elements. Unfortunately, the only way to do this is to saturate the wood with chemicals. These chemicals can be toxic to your pets if they like to chew on the wood. Their chewing will release some of these processed chemicals and they will absorb them into their body. The chemicals from these treated dog and cat houses will also leech into the soil around where the houses are set.

Thankfully, there has been a massive growth in the number of eco-friendly dog ​​and cat houses in the past few years as more and more people are looking for ways to lessen their carbon imprint. These houses are made of materials that are either completely environmentally friendly, or are made of items that have been kept from landfills, like recycled plastic and PVC. The advances in recycled creations have come a long way and these types of dog and cat houses are being made in a number of styles and colors to suit even the most discerning dog or finicky feline.

Opportunities for Africa to Deepen Financial Inclusion and Development

When people can participate in the financial systems, they are better able to start and expand businesses, invest in their children's education, and absorb financial shocks.

Sub-Saharan Africa has a population with most lives being at the economic downstream, and most likely underdeveloped. The financial inclusion gender gap and income gap persisting just like in other continents, although higher in Sub-Saharan Africa. World Population estimates based on the latest estimates released on June 21, 2017, by the United Nations, shows Africa continues as the second largest content with a population of 1,256,268,025 (16% of the population of the world) and by the end of January 2018 , 40.2% living in urban areas.

The continent has the highest fertility rate of 4.7% (Oceania 2.4%, Asia 2.2%, Latin American and Caribbean 2.1%, Northern America 1.9% and Europe 1.6%) compared to the other continents with a yearly population rate change (increase) of 2.55% - the highest all all continents. Most of its people (59.8%) have lived downstream (rural areas and villages) sometimes out of the mainstream economy. Policy targeting could be difficult in such scenarios, and identifying people who lack access to financial and economic inclusion comes with a huge financial cost in itself, although the benefit in doing so outweighs the cost in mere numbers and requires commitment from leaders and managers of the proportional economies. Coupled with a universal phenomenon of non-perfect, untrusted, and in some cases non-existing data on the continent, that could make decision imperfect and data unreliable, affecting planning, policies and the potencies to resolve established challenges or improving the economic and social fiber of countries.

The struggles of the financially excluded come from barriers and reasons as access, social and cultural factors, income, education and many possible lists of others. Financial exclusion arguably is one of the reasons some economic policies lack potency to effectively target well on the citizenry with its results in persistent poverty and inequality. Lack of access to basic needs like an account either at the bank or mobile money could mean significant possibilities of opportunities untapped. Globally countries have realized the importance of achieving inclusive societies and supports efforts at maximizing financial inclusion. Sub-Saharan Africa has made some strides over the years in financial and economic inclusion in this regard at individual country levels.

Efforts ingoing in Ghana include a commitment to promoting and prioritizing financial inclusion. The country made specific and concrete commitments to further advance financial inclusion under the `` Maya Declaration`` since 2012 and has an ambitious target of achieving 75% Universal financial inclusiveness of its adult population by 2020. Ghana currently has 58% of its adult population having access to financial services and is also finalizing its National Financial Inclusion Strategy which will become the guiding document and reference for inclusive actions, stakeholder roles and responsibilities spelt out for all.

Kenya, however, has earned global recognition in leading the all others in the world in mobile money account penetration, and with twelve other sub-Saharan African Countries following, researchers show. The rate at which African countries are projecting innovation technology for digital financial inclusion is impressive. The country has made giant strides in its financial inclusion commitments, especially under the Maya Declaration.

There has been some paradigm shift in Information and Communication Technology and its importance which is being considered as a factor of economic growth. ICT has the ability to provide services with minimal cost, improve innovation, and provide infrastructure for convenient and easy to use services, it can also provide a route to access many auxiliary financial services.

At the macro level, digital innovation influence economic development and economic policy effectiveness.The benefits ICT enabled financial services include the possible creation of employment- mobile money vendors, increases in revenue receipts of government, helps firms productivity (both private and public), aid in cost control and efficiencies, and could contribute to rural development and governance: Governance and revenue mobilization efforts, especially at local government levels, which can be enhanced through ICT which aids in overall improvement in corporate governance. Importantly, Innovation Technology can help in the deepening of financial inclusion either through access, usage, reducing risk and improving quality of services, so, per formula for Financial Inclusion (FI), thus, FI = (Unlocking Access + Unlocking Usage + Quality) - Risk.

Access to financial services can generate economic activities-Sophisticated use of financial services even presents larger economic and social possibilities for the included. In Mexico, a research by Bruhn and Love revealed that, there were huge impacts in the economy in Mexico, that is, 7% increase in all income levels (in the local community) when Banco Azteca had rapid openings of branches in over a thousand Grupo Elektra retail stores when compared to other communities that branches were not opened. Also the savings proportion by those households in the local community reduced by 6.6%, a situation attributed to the fact that households were able to barely less on savings as a surplus against income fluctuation when formal credit became available.

Here, it must be noted that through savings is encouraged, the reduction in savings by 6.6% means more funds can rather be channeled for investments into economically viable entities or services. As the cycle continues, and in sophisticated use of financial services along the financial services value chain, they will need to save however for other investments later. Similar or even more positive correlation is observed if the medium of access and usage is through innovative technology.

Using Digital Financial Inclusion Strategies in Humanitarian Services

Despite the use and usefulness of financial services in crises situations, financial exclusion is particularly acute among crisis-affected countries. 75% of adults living in countries with humanitarian crises remains outside of the formal financial system and strive to respond to shocks and emergencies, build up productive assets, and invest in health, education, and business.

Researchers continue to show the growth in acceptance of electronic payments especially through the use of mobile phones. There is growing evidence supporting digital financial inclusion. GSMA in its reports disclosed that there were 93 countries between the periods of 2006-2016 of with 271 mobile money operating service providers who had registered over 400 million accounts globally. They give some evidence in some countries - which have been receiving humanitarian assistance- where there is growing acceptance of digital financial inclusion through use of a phone.

In Rwanda significant numbers of refugees used phones for mobile money services whiles some do so commercially for service fees. In Uganda, Refugee communities are noted for use of mobile money service as per the report. This has necessitated MNO Orange Uganda, a telecommunications firm to expand mobile money service to refugee communities by building a communication tower to improve access and usage of the services. In Pakistan, one of the largest refugee communities- third largest- has the government using mobile money for cash transfers to refugees. The evidence abounds and this calls for humanitarian agencies to rethink and reconsider digital inclusive financial services beyond the current numbers. In Lebanon (The largest refugee community) those on humanitarian assistance uses ATM issued by aid organizations to access their cash transfers.

Sarah Bailey, however, observed that humanitarian areas that were receiving cash transfers through mobile money could increase the use of certain services but does not automatically lead to widespread or sustained uptake. People may prefer to continue using informal financial systems that are more familiar, accessible and profitable. Her study revealed that that, the provision of humanitarian e-transfers, even when combined with training, was not sufficient to enable the vast majority of participants to conduct mobile money transactions independently.

The finds are certainly acceptable in the short run per our knowledge. However, on a long-term basis and with financial capacity activities - not just training- the results could possibly be different. Financial capacity activities deal with not just training and education, but the overall financial health and well-being of the people. And this should be done in a hierarchy-bits-by-bits- and not at a one leap jump approach. This seems to have been echoed by the United Nations. According to Ban Ki-moon as cited in advised that we must return our focus to the people at the center of these crises, moving beyond short-term, supply-driven response efforts towards demand-driven outcomes that reduce need and vulnerability. Financial inclusion strategies may not lead to widespread uptake within a few days, but evidence abounds that in a long-term, it could.

The thirteen countries in the world with the most mobile money penetration today had some being on humanitarian support just a few years back-. Sustained access and use of innovative technology for inclusion then would have a better impact on them the more today.

Undertaking a case study on the use of digital means for humanitarian transfer will show that in the short term run there may be lack of interest or even rejection. Coupled with regulatory barriers and other barriers stated, people during a humanitarian crisis may not really be thinking much of connecting to the economic system on the whole or how their support comes (this is the business of policymakers on humanitarian service) but rather be much interested in survival within a short run. The psychology of that period of need is centred on - What is needed is the urgency of support - money - physical cash in most cases to enable them to get the basics of security and food with the most liquid instrument. Humanitarian communities have needs just as all other communities within the financial services need a framework.

Indeed evidence suggests there have been few instances only worldwide where the use of digital transfers in humanitarian transfers has led to widespread use of services. Digital transfers in humanitarian services must be a process and done within the particular context of time. In this sense, the digital strategies must be humanitarian, and must embed in the social and behavioral change financial capacity capabilities capable of two-way communications with practices on usage and the benefits it brings in the long term- It must be in a hierarchy. Simple financial needs should be met before revised needs. Any deviation will of course results in lack of interest in the services.

Howard Thomas observed that "Financial technology still leaves out swathes of people, and this means missed opportunities for development," And in some cases, community structures may not be innovative or agile enough to allow new technologies to spread, he adds. "Savvy entrepreneurs are not necessarily from established jurisdictions. Sometimes it's a matter of identifying individual leaders, networks or pathways through which to promote new technologies."

Indeed there have been some lessons however on how to manage humanitarian remittance, the parameters, however, are that financial inclusion is a continuous and sustaining effort of providing access and use of financial services in a sustaining and responsive manner which meets the needs within a reduced risk - it is not just one time project of implementation policies at speed but rather concentrate on meeting the basic before revised needs. Within a humanitarian definite, a complex multiplicity of issues may serve as barriers to using digital financial services including location and urgent needs; however those barriers when managed within a reasonable period and coupled with financial capacity activities (the act of complete financial well-being), then favurable results would have been achieved.

The use of behavioral change financial capacity education, training and practice into human communication on digital transfers would help in improvement in the uphill acceptance over a period of time. sub-Saharan African countries have been realizing some tremendous gains in the use of innovative technology, and expansion of ICT services and infrastructure on the continent. Its study time past points out those countries on the continent generally made revenues amounting to 5% of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) from telecommunication related services as compared to European countries where revenues from the telecommunication services represented 2.9% of their total GDP.

Sub-Africans Countries need repositioning and further investment in the "digital economy" in order to open up and benefit fully inclusiveness of their economy. Here our interest is in mobile technology and innovation which is the critical avenue that Africa could use mostly in achieving financial inclusion within the short to long term.

Kenya is making giant strides and leading the way in digital innovation for mobile financial services globally. Researchers have shown that sub-Sahara Africa countries are leading the technological innovation drive in the usage of mobile financial services.Kenya and other Sub-Saharan African nations are making the greatest strides in mobile money accounts penetration and with lots of opportunities foreseen. Globally the thirteen countries that mobile account penetration has been over 10%, all 13 are from Africa-Botswana, Cote d'ivoire, Ghana, Mali, Kenya, Somalia, Rwanda, Namibia, Tanzania, South Africa, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe ( ranging from 10% -58% for the 13 countries).

Kenya is leading at 58% mobile money account penetration, with Somalia, Tanzania and Uganda "following closely" reporting around 35%. Namibia out of 13 countries has the least of mobile money penetration of about 10% (still higher than all others in the world except the other 12 African countries). Mobile money account is recorded to be widespread in East Africa (20% and 10% of adults have mobile money accounts and mobile money account only respectively) than any other region.

Firms providing financial services, be it services or infrastructure is the most important and unique set of stakeholders who should be encouraged to take the lead roles in financial inclusion activities and implementations. Financial services firms are exclusively positioned, to use their existing infrastructure and leverage to creating access, and use of digital financial services.

They do so effectively and at a lesser cost as compared to government agencies because they can do so through their already existing departments as the marketing and customer service departments. Financial services firms are driving innovation for digital finance across the globe. Firms as GCAP have been investing in solutions to accelerate financial inclusion. It announced that in its call for proposals on innovative digital technology with huge potential to advancing the financial inclusion drive in sub-Saharan Africa, out of the over 200 applicants and proposals submitted, Financial Technology (Fintech) firms submitted (56%), Financial Services Providers (18%), Non-Governmental Organizations (13%) and Technology Services Providers (9%).

Growing evidence from other similar calls suggests that there is a trend, that the journey of using innovative technology and financial inclusion in the sub-Saharan African is not only picking up but even shows a rather promising outlook for the future, the opportunities for countries in the region are indicative for nations in advancing financial inclusion.

The call now is for countries at their policy levels to position themselves, armed with policies and willingness of governments to support and cooperate with the private sector to drive financial inclusion activities. However, to further economic and economic for much better gain is a continuing process and does not take just a few days but undoably without partnerships between public-private role and decision establishment and support, it will take us rather too long. Collaboration is there before important for financial inclusion drives and actions.

For Governments or the public sector, their support in creating the needed supportive framework and regulations for the industry is important. Regulations and environment that supports innovation and drives whiles customer rights are supported are so much needed in this sector. In providing support and helping in creating an environment for financial inclusion activities to make the required impacting effects, government policies must have some balance of care. By doing so, any policy by a government on financial inclusion that does not take views from other important stakeholders may be implemented at last, but not without difficulties and in some case unreasonable delay in implementation.

This can be attributed to a variety of reasons: more importantly, policies may be concluded, but if financial services providers are not ready or not able to implement those policies, then, problems of `` bothered`` policies then begin to show. In financial inclusion drives, success depends mostly on collaborations for improvement between the public-private sectors.

The Opportunities for sub-Saharan African Economies
The opportunities exist for groups of people who need access and usage of financial services yet unable because of the barriers they confront mostly. Sub-Saharan African Governments and private stakeholders can improve on the regulatory constraints and allow for the tap in technology innovation respectably to design solutions that will open access and use of financial services

An important Segment of organized groups usually out of the formal financial economy thus, the "Savings Groups" always have their common values ​​and beliefs most often deeply guided with cultural and social entrenchment that must be considered when targeting with financial inclusion products and designs.

The groups usually common in Asia, sub-Saharan Africa and Latin American come together for social and economic benefits and supports. They have different specific objectives but commonly among reasons are for group savings, group insurance, good trading and all kinds of group support systems. At best design of product and services for "savings groups" if the top is successfully accepted can only be through a consultative process, sometimes customized or tailor-made services (most appropriate where possible) and winning the genuine interest of the groups.

There are over 14 million members of "Savings Groups" across 75 countries in sub-Saharan Africa, Asia and Latin America, representing a promising platform for financial inclusion in under-served markets. Savings Groups offer an entry point for financial service providers to isolated communities; they are organized, experience and disciplined; they aggregate demand across many low-income clients, and they have identified needs that financial service providers can address. Also, these groups are very goal oriented and purposeful but lack certain financial services- Some basic needs like accounts and payments and others are sophisticated needs like saving platforms. Tailoring products to meet these sectors who lack access to some financial services and are in need of those financial services would create opportunities for financial inclusiveness.

Prioritization of digital payments is one way of minimizing corruption within expenses, be it the private or public sector. Digitizing payments means better tracking of records of payments through the value chain of spending and transfers. In the Agriculture economy, it means that when the government pays 1 million dollars ($ 1.000.000.00) directly through `` mobile money` to its citizenry for goods and services, then its most likely that, subject to cost of the transaction, farmers will receive their funds intact and same. The vulnerable citizen would then have value for money in dealing with the government whiles having to benefit from the opportunities that having an account and using it comes with. Such is not the case when physical cash changes hands in payments.

The adoption level of digital financial inclusion with mobile money is generally high for sub-Saharan African. Stakeholders in the Public in the region can leverage its strong foundation and application of mobile money services to scale up the use of digital payments, but courses that must be the backing infrastructure to expand access as well. Increase in account ownership as a preliminary financial inclusion indicator has been formally through financial institutions except those registered in Africa where mobile money accounts have moved the growth in accounts ownership from 24% to 34% in 2011 and 2014 respectively.

An area Africa is making giant strides - Mobile money account penetration. Accounts ownership and its definition have changed over just three years when Global Findex Database launched its first data for comparable indicators among countries on financial inclusion. In 2014 it considered mobile money accounts as recognized accounts in their right, hitherto in 2011 that was not the case. The opposite was rather the accepted case, and rightly so. Today the digital disruptions in the financial, telecommunication and economic arena are having is affects.

For Policymakers and private sectorholders, more keenly important is the fact that 5 of the thirteen sub-Saharan African countries (Somalia, Uganda, Côte d'Ivoire, Tanzania and Zimbabwe have an adult population with more mobile account than they have from a formal traditional financial institution. What this means is that, in those five countries, an ordinary man on the street is more likely to have, use, trust and save in a mobile money account or wallet than saving with a traditional formal bank account. This comes with intense opportunities and breakthroughs. Digital payments are comfortable, fast and less expensive than physical cash payments platforms.

Tailoring products to meet these sectors who lack access to some financial services and are in need of those financial services would create opportunities for financial inclusiveness. Prioritization of digital payments is one way of minimizing corruption within expenses, be it the private or public sector. Digitizing payments means better tracking of records of payments through the value chain of spending and transfers. In the Agriculture economy, it means that when the government pays 1 million dollars ($ 1.000.000.00) directly through `` mobile money` to its citizenry for goods and services, then its most likely that, subject to cost of the transaction, farmers will receive their funds intact and same. The vulnerable citizen would then have value for money in dealing with the government whiles having to benefit from the opportunities that having an account and using it comes with. Such is not the case when physical cash changes hands in payments

The adoption level of digital financial inclusion with mobile money is generally high for sub-Saharan African. Stakeholders in the Public in the region can leverage its strong foundation and application of mobile money services to scale up the use of digital payments, but courses that must be the backing infrastructure to expand access as well. Increase in account ownership as a preliminary financial inclusion indicator has been formally through financial institutions except those registered in Africa where mobile money accounts have moved the growth in accounts ownership from 24% to 34% in 2011 and 2014 respectively.

An area Africa is making giant strides - Mobile money account penetration. Accounts ownership and its definition have changed over just three years when Global Findex Database launched its first data for comparable indicators among countries on financial inclusion. In 2014 it considered mobile money accounts as recognized accounts in their right, hitherto in 2011 that was not the case. The opposite was rather the accepted case, and rightly so.

Today the digital disruptions in the financial, telecommunication and economic arena are having is affects. For Policymakers and private sectorholders, more keenly important is the fact that 5 of the thirteen sub-Saharan African countries (Somalia, Uganda, Côte d'Ivoire, Tanzania and Zimbabwe have an adult population with more mobile account than they have from a formal traditional financial institution. What this means is that, in those five countries, an ordinary man on the street is more likely to have, use, trust and save in a mobile money account or wallet than saving with a traditional formal bank account. This comes with intense opportunities and breakthroughs. Digital payments are comfortable, fast and less expensive than physical cash payments

Recommendations
1) Regional and sub-regional bodies in sub-Saharan Africa should take up the financial inclusion drive as a priority and ensure peer-to-peer commitments of its members based on individual country socio-economic dynamics.
2) Each sub-Saharan African country should develop a National Financial Inclusion Strategy in a highly consultative manner at their country levels to guide their efforts.
3) Sub-Saharan African Governments should continue supporting ongoing literature and research work on Financial and Economic inclusion to provide reliable data will guide the policymakers developmental aspirations and economic policies. There are countries should set up Financial Inclusion Research Fund as part of their National Financial Inclusion Strategy to support ongoing research on financial inclusion issues for their jurisprudence.
4) Sub-Saharan African Countries should commit a percentage (at least 1%) of their annual GDP as the budget for Innovative technology for the support of the digital economy stimulator for sectors like financial service and other industries to perform.
5) Efforts should be made at country and regional levels to make the use of financial services delivered electronically cheaper - best practice is Wechat and AliPay payment solutions in China. Wechat specifically has no cost build up for use of its platform for payment of goods and services, so before promoting the use of mobile phones and users can transfer cash and make purchases digitally for goods costing as low as half a dollar. It is practically possible to pay for an item bought at an amount which is less than a dollar with no additional fee except the cost of item only. These are some of the readily felt benefits of Innovation Technology within the banking space.
6) African government set up support investment funds and partner firms which can design innovative technologies in the area.

How to Start Your Own Towing Business

Owning your own business can be very rewarding both financially and personally. Just to see something that you thought of grow from the beginning stages and develop into something successful and helpful to the community and be profitable is great. But on the other side of the coin you could put your life savings into something that sounds almost fool proof, and then loose it all. In this article I will help you explore the costs of starting and running your own business. You will be nudged to think of things you have probably never thought of. Some of the things that we will explore are: How do I choose a good name, or location for the business? What type of expenses are involved? What about my competition? What business losses should I expect? Who will my customer be? As you go through this article start a list of things you will need and the estimated cost associated with each item. I like to think of this like getting into the car and heading out to see some great site you heard about. The likelihood of getting where want in a pleasant way will be much better, much cheaper, and faster if you do some research and planning.

Before we get into all the details about the towing business I want to ask you to think about why you want to do this. If your motivation is that you know someone who made the big bucks in towing, you might want to think again. You should be desiring to help people, or you just really love big trucks, or something more like that, because you will need a love for what you're doing to motivate you when the tough financial times come.

To start with you are going to need to decide two important things. What area will I start my business in and service, and what type of addressing will I specialize in. Once you determine these two things then you can start developing a list of expenses. You may want to start in the area you currently work in due to people you already know, or you may want to be in an area by where you live. That's OK but you still need to think like a business man and do some research to see if this is a good idea. The same thing applies toward the type of towing you will specialize in. You will need to look at your competition and see if they are meeting the customer's needs well in the area you want to service, and for the type of towing service you want to do. Is there slow response, rude employees, long on hold time, late arrivals, dirty appearance of equipment and personnel? This is what you want to find. If price is your only angle, what will you do if the competition simply lowers its price until you run out of money? If you do not find these problems with your competitors think seriously about changing your location or type of towing until you can bring some relief to ailing customers.

Next you will need to choose a name. Try something different so people will remember you, there are already enough Dave's Towing companies. Then check into what business entity would be best for you. You could be a corporation, LLC, partnership, or a sole proprietorship. Each has its benefits and drawbacks as well as costs associated with each. Most start ups will be a sole proprietor, especially one man shops, just know that in this form you and your personal property can be at greater risk in a law suit.

Now that you know where you will start and what your specialty will be you need to think about who you want for a customer and who you do not. Will you work for Police, motor clubs, insurance companies, private parties, or repair shops? It is wise to think about what type of customer you may not want too. The reasons you may not want a certain type of customer is the work is low profit, risky, slow paying, or inconvenient. Once you have determined who you would like for a customer choose how to best reach them. The normal methods are yellow pages, internet ads, truck signage, cards, soliciting, and promo's. Some of the common promo's are t-shirts, ball caps, pens, coffee mugs, and similar items.

Local laws are an important thing to check into also. It is bad for business to have overlooked some agency requirement and be labeled a bootleg or illegal operation. So find out what licenses, permits, and agency fees will be needed. In California all towing companies are required to have a Ca. number, and a motor carrier permit, and if you have any employees you will need workers comp insurance. Some cities are very picky about parking a commercial vehicle in a residential area or running a business out of your home, so check before you start.

Business losses are something to definitely factor in. All businesses suffer losses from non payment, bad checks, employee theft, outsider theft, vehicle damage claims, personal injury claims, and other. There will also be times you can not work due to the flu, or a truck break down, or you're in a training seminar or at a wedding. These things need to be figured in either by subtracting from revenue or adding an expense for them.

Networking and promoting your business will cost money too. Will you join some organization like the Chamber of Commerce, the Tow Truck Association, or a Christian Businessmen organization? Do not forget to add the cost of dues, meals, and subtract from the revenue for the time you are there and unable to work.

What type of payment will you accept? There are costs for accepting credit cards, debit cards, and tele-checks. Processing fees average about 2% -3% of the sale and you may have to buy a processing terminal costing up to $ 800. Most companies also lease the equipment. Even cash can cost you by accepting counterfeits or making wrong change, or losing it. If you have employees this is a bigger challenge.

If you are starting a one truck operation, do not get cheap on your truck purchase. The appearance of your truck and the reliability can greatly harm your reputation if you chose poorly. I recommend starting with a truck worth about $ 35,000. at minimum. Speaking of appearance, will you get company uniforms or will you look unprofessional?

Attorney fees, is also an area often overlooked by new businesses. I recommend a pre paid type of legal plan that allows for lots of phone question time. How about the book keeping and accounting duties? Even if you do them yourself you will need to buy software like Quick Books and will probably need to pay for set up and training or at least periodic help. Who will answer the phones, your wife, she wont do it well if you do not pay her, and you'll probably still need an answer service for after hours or when your out to dinner.

There are many other expenses like electric, natural gas, diesel fuel, cell phone, and others that I did not cover because they are common sense things most everyone can expect. Taxes is another thing everyone can expect but a lot of people do not figure in that as a business owner you will pay all the employee contributions as well as the employee taxes. Normally an employee would pay say $ 250 in SSI and the company would match that $ 250., Now you will pay both so do not forget to pencil it in.

I hope this did not overwhelm you but has caused you to think and plan well enough to avoid the many pitfalls that new businesses fall into. Good luck with your new adventure!

Mobile Device Security Risks for BYOD Businesses - Implement Responsible Mobile Recycling

Business professionals have come to depend on their mobile phones, tablets and devices as part of their everyday lives. However, according to a recent study, the majority of users are concerned about the mobile security on these devices and confused where they should be looking for help when security incidents arise.

In March 2012, Juniper Networks' first annual Mobility Index mandated 4,037 mobile device users and IT decision-makers in the United States, United Kingdom, Germany, China and Japan. The study reveals that most mobile users remain skeptical about the safety of their devices and the applications they utilize. According to this study, 63 percent of users are not sure if they should trust that their mobile experiences are secure.

The Bring Your Own Device trend gaining in popularity and because of this IT professionals reported data security breaches on unsanctioned devices as their number one concern. In fact, more than 40 percent of those surveyed indicated that they use personal devices for work without official permission. With nearly one-third of IT professionals reporting that their organization experienced a data security break as a result of a personal device accessing company data, enterprises need to begin considering mobile security a serious issue.

According to the survey, 63 percent of users hold their service providers responsible for the safety of their private data. The remaining individuals surveyed depend on the device manufacturers and software service providers. However, all parties have a part to play in preventing mobile security breaches. Users have a responsibility to find out what applications they are using and if they are safe. They also need to protect the data on their phone with password protection or remote wiping capabilities in the case of theft. Business owners also have a responsibility to put in place a mobile security plan that will protect their employees as well as the company's confidential data.

To avoid giving cybercriminals the chance to hack into corporate networks, enterprises need to address the issues of mobile security and develop a plan to combat these issues. As more people rely on mobile applications, services and networks to handle critical personal and business information, individual users need to educate themselves on the consequences of mobile security while companies need to develop a comprehensive solution that will protect their sensitive corporate data.

An important consideration often overlooked in protecting sensitive mobile data is the responsible reuse and recycling of used devices once they are replaced with a newer technology. Many BYOD enterprises provide employee stipends to purchase their preferred mobile phone or tablet for business use, however they do not have procedures in place to ensure the data on used devices is protected once discarded.

In a recent study, Electronic Retention : What Does Your Mobile Phone Reveal About You ?, researchers in the UK investigated the amount to which sensitive information resides on mobile phones after users attempt to remove the information. For the study, 49 re-sold mobile devices were admitted from secondary markets and examined using mobile forensic toolkits. Every device yielded some user information and 11,135 pieces of information were recovered, confirming that temporary personal information is retained on a typical mobile device.

Without a clear mobile recycling policy in place, employees are free to sell the used devices on eBay, Craiglist or online mobile buyback companies that offer little or no data protection guarantees. Additionally, it is essential for a BYOD organization to establish a partnership with a trusted mobile asset recovery and recycling vendor that offers proven, documented mobile data cancellation methods and require their work to only resell and recycle their used mobile devices through this partner.

Enterprises that establish a secure mobile recycling program will not only benefit financially by recouping the remaining resale value of used mobile devices, but also ensure that their sensitive data does not end up in the wrong hands. For a list of certified electronics recyclers with valid data deletion processes, visit http://e-Stewards.org .

How To Find And Enjoy The Books You Want

Millions of books are published each year. Unfortunately, most of us have very little time to enjoy these books. That is one of the primary reasons why downloading and listening to audio books has become so popular during the past few years. Download them to listen while you drive, exercise at the gym, or wait for the train to take you to the office saves an enormous amount of time. However, some people do not understand how the entire process works. As a result, they tend to avoid the technology as it is unfamiliar to them.

Step # 1: Use An Audio Book Catalog To Find Titles

It is easy to find the most popular book titles by visiting an online site and using the search functionality on that site. You can usually search by the title of the book or the author's name. Some audio book catalog sites even allow you to search by keyword. If you do not have a particular title in mind, you can simply browse through different genres or release date.

Step # 2: Get Access To Audio Book Titles

There are 2 options to gaining access to the titles that you want.

Option 1 - Join An Audio Book Subscription Service

You can choose to join a subscription service to download audio books. Such subscription services often cost $ 10- $ 20 each month with an additional charge for each one that you download. The additional charge is small, but can add up over time.

Option 2 - Download Audio Books Without Paying A Subscription Fee

You can also choose to bypass the monthly subscription fee and download yours from sites. Rather than charging a subscription fee each month, these types of sites only charge a fee for each audio book that you download.

Your decision of which option to choose will depend upon how many of them you will enjoy each month. For example, if you think you will listen to dozens of audio books each month, a subscription services would be a good choice. However, if you will only listen to a few each month and simply want to enjoy the time savings and convenience of being able to do so without leaving your home, some sites may be the perfect fit for your personal needs.

Step # 3: Download Your Audio Book And Begin Listening

Once you choose the audio book titles you want to enjoy, simply download them in the same manner you would download any file. After you have downloaded them, you can immediately begin listening to it on your computer if that is your preference.

If you would like to listen to these downloadable audio books in your car or your home stereo system, simply copy the file to a CD. Because some older CD players are unable to play MP3 files, you may need to convert the MP3 file into a .wav file before copying it to a CD. You can also directly transfer the MP3 from your computer onto your MP3 player to take with you on the road.

Finding these titles, downloading those titles and listening to them in whatever environment you choose is easy. If you are reading this article, it is likely you already have everything you need to begin enjoying your favorite books within minutes.

Teaching Kids About Money

Money does grow on trees - Have you ever wondered what the difference is between the people who have money and the people who do not? Why is it that one of your friends family (or maybe it's yours) has money and another one of your friends family (maybe this one is yours) does not?

The answer may be in a great job, or maybe your grandparents or great grandparents had money and your family inherited it. Maybe it was from the lottery or maybe it is from a business.

Money does not care who you are, what your name is, what color your skin is, what religion you are. The only thing money cares about is that you're a good manager of it. If you are, it will want to stay. Not only will it want to stay, it will invite all it's friends to stay as well. Then the friends will invite their friends and their friends until you are managing tons of money. On the other hand, if you are not a good money manager, your money will get bored and leave.

So where do you get the information you need to become a good money manager? Well, that's a great question that has a great answer. There are lots of books written on the subject but the one I'd recommend the most is Money Does Grow On Trees.

This book was written by two people who have dedicated their lives to teaching kids and adults how to become financially independent as a major aspect to creating the live of their dreams. The books full title is Money Does Grow On Trees - kids, learn how to earn, spend, save and invest your money. It is a full and complete guide to teaching the kids first one money is and where it came from. It then teachers kids how to earn, spend, save and ultimately invest money so that they can become the type of money manager that money will be taken to.

It will teach kids exactly what they need to do to plant their own money tree, make sure it gets the care it needs and watch it grow.